Lt. j.g. David Hardy is a damage-control and small-boats officer on the guided missile destroyer Russell. |
Lt. j.g. David Hardy, a damage-control and small-boats officer on the guided missile destroyer Russell, was among the Navy personnel who rescued the crew of an Air Force B-1 bomber that developed equipment problems and ditched in the Indian Ocean on the night of Dec. 12. Hardy is one of eight children, all of whom graduated from Bishop O’Connell High School in Arlington, Va. His parents, Richard and Marianne, live in Falls Church, Va.
Dear Family and Friends,
Last night I was witness to a true miracle. Around 10 p.m., a B-1 bomber with a crew of four went down about 100 miles north of Diego Garcia. One of the pilots was talking on his radio from a survival raft, so we knew that at least one had survived. It took us about an hour to race north as close as we could get to the crash site. They had gone down over a shallow bank, so our ship had to stand off about seven miles away.
We put the small boats in the water. As we headed away from the ship, there were three things I’ll always remember — the eerie smell of jet fuel in the water, the magnificent number of stars in the sky and a confidence that everything would be all right.
We didn’t see the light until we were about a mile away and came upon two pilots sitting in their survival rafts. Right about the same time, we spotted another strobe. As we hauled them up into the boat, one of them greeted us calmly: “Hey guys, thanks for coming. It’s good to see you.”
The other boat picked up the third guy, and we were told to bring the three back to the ship. On the way, and just as we were about to pass him, the fourth pilot lit off his flare just long enough to be noticed, and we located him a couple of minutes later using night-vision goggles. He was the one who had been talking on his radio the whole time. The pilots had ejected from their plane at 17,000 feet, upside down, falling at 300 knots and landed spread out in shallow water in the middle of nowhere.
Our boats were guided right to the downed pilots. They were in rough shape but amazingly composed. By 2 a.m., four hours after the crash, all were onboard the USS Russell. It had to be a miracle. Finding that fourth pilot, and being able to tell buddies that their whole crew was safe, was just about the best feeling in the whole world. That moment made all of this worthwhile. I wanted to share it.
Hope all’s well with everyone at home.
P.S. Mom and Dad, I had the rosary and Saint Christopher medal in my chest pocket and I have no doubt that they helped.
God bless,
Dave
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